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My grandfather from my father’s side was called Adolf Schosberger; he was born in 1855 in Backa Palanka [located in Vojvodina, Serbia]. It is not clear to me why he was born there, probably in the days after the bombing the life was difficult in Novi Sad, so the family had left to this nearby place for a short time and then returned again to Novi Sad.
Grandfather Adolf married Gizela Feith from Bugyi around 1880; it was the third generation of young men from Schosberger family that married girls from Feith family. They lived at number 28 Futoska Street, across the synagogue [today Jewish street, in the center of Novi Sad]. It was the house of Dr. Rudolf Grubi, he was very known Jewish doctor in Novi Sad. His house was a two-story house; he lived at first flour and we occupied the whole ground level on the right side, facing the street. We had plenty of rooms, I think 4 or 5. There was no bathroom; at that time Novi Sad did not have a water-supply, but there in the bedroom existed a kind of closet with a marble tile. On that tile there was a washbowl from porcelain with pitcher, and there we washed ourselves in the morning; the toilet was in the hall but it was a toilet without running water. There were servants in the house, there was a woman who was helping my grandmother and there were servants who worked in the warehouses of my grandfather’s company. It is interesting that, although the mother tongue of my grandfather and my grandmother was Hungarian, all business books were kept in German, I don’t know why but it was like this. But the spoken languages of people here were Serbian and Hungarian.
Grandfather Adolf like his ancestors was a businessman, but had started as an accountant. As alleged, he had his own office in 1896 on the Vilson’s square [today, at the main post office], and in 1904 he founded his store that was called ‘Adolf Sosberger Agency and Commission Store’. The company was located for a long time at number 28 Futoska Street; where they lived as well. As the children were finishing schools they would go to work at their father’s company. Besides having his own store, Grandfather Adolf was also a partner in Goldsmith’s and watchmaker store of his brother Filip and his brother-in-law Samuil Kraus (his sister’s, Gizela, husband).
Grandfather Adolf married Gizela Feith from Bugyi around 1880; it was the third generation of young men from Schosberger family that married girls from Feith family. They lived at number 28 Futoska Street, across the synagogue [today Jewish street, in the center of Novi Sad]. It was the house of Dr. Rudolf Grubi, he was very known Jewish doctor in Novi Sad. His house was a two-story house; he lived at first flour and we occupied the whole ground level on the right side, facing the street. We had plenty of rooms, I think 4 or 5. There was no bathroom; at that time Novi Sad did not have a water-supply, but there in the bedroom existed a kind of closet with a marble tile. On that tile there was a washbowl from porcelain with pitcher, and there we washed ourselves in the morning; the toilet was in the hall but it was a toilet without running water. There were servants in the house, there was a woman who was helping my grandmother and there were servants who worked in the warehouses of my grandfather’s company. It is interesting that, although the mother tongue of my grandfather and my grandmother was Hungarian, all business books were kept in German, I don’t know why but it was like this. But the spoken languages of people here were Serbian and Hungarian.
Grandfather Adolf like his ancestors was a businessman, but had started as an accountant. As alleged, he had his own office in 1896 on the Vilson’s square [today, at the main post office], and in 1904 he founded his store that was called ‘Adolf Sosberger Agency and Commission Store’. The company was located for a long time at number 28 Futoska Street; where they lived as well. As the children were finishing schools they would go to work at their father’s company. Besides having his own store, Grandfather Adolf was also a partner in Goldsmith’s and watchmaker store of his brother Filip and his brother-in-law Samuil Kraus (his sister’s, Gizela, husband).
Location
Serbia
Interview
Pavle Sosberger